Sun Protection

Making sure that you are adequately protected when you are out in the sun is now more pertinent than ever. If you have beautiful pale skin, you may want it to stay that way, and the only way to do this is to wear appropriate suntan cream. Everyone knows the dangers of overexposure to the sun s rays, so making sure you have the right suntan cream, with a good level of sun protection factor (spf) is really important. There has been a big change in suntan creams over the last few years and with such a huge range available it can be difficult knowing what brand to buy. The most important things to look at are the protection the cream gives against UVA and UVB radiation and the spf level the suntan cream provides. The higher the factor you choose the greater protection from the sun you will have. The majority of suntan creams last for about 2 or 3 years, so making sure that your bottle is no older than this is vital. Remember, the sun s intensity will vary throughout the day so choose a cream that will provide the protection your skin needs. ... View more - View less

Sun Screens

Why Sun Protection is important

A lot of people know it´s not good to stay in the sun for too long, and that the sun should be avoided when she´s at her brightest (between 12:00 and 15:00). Yet many people don´t realize that sunburn is not caused by the perceptible warmth of the sun, but by UVB, and to a lesser extent UVA. UV is short for ultra-violet, a type of electromagnetic radiation that is not visible to the human eye. There are three types of ultra-violet radiation: UVA, UVB and UVC, each type of UV-radiation has a different wavelength, UVB is most harmful to the skin, but UVA can be dangerous too. UV-radiation does not depend on temperature, so you can also suffer sunburn on your winter sports holiday. Sunburn is caused when somebody is exposed to too much UV-radiation, the skin turns red and becomes painful, this usually happens a couple of hours after sunbathing. When somebody suffers from extreme sunburn, blistering can occur. People with a pale, white skin will get sunburned more easily than people with a dark skin, that´s because dark skin contains more melanin which makes the skin thicker. Even though a dark skin won´t turn red, it should still be protected against UV-radiation. UV-radiation is damaging because it can penetrate skin cells and can change the cells´ DNA-structure. To a certain extent this change can be reversed, if this is not possible, the skin cells will be rejected, we call this peeling. Sometimes the change in the DNA of the skin cells is not noticed by the body, when these skin cell starts to divide uncontrollably we speak of skin cancer. UV-radiation is also bad for the elastin in the skin; elastin is the protein in the connective tissue that gives the skin elasticity. The UV-radiation destroys the elastin, although new elastin can be produced, this process slows down with age, that´s why people who sunbathe a lot without sunscreen, tend to have older looking skin. Enough reasons to use sun protection.

Sun Protection Factor

A very effective way to protect oneself from the sun, is wearing protective clothing, but this is quite a drastic measure. Fortunately, there´s a wide range of products that can protect the bare skin against the sun. Sunscreen products have a so-called `Sun Protection Factor´, often abbreviated to SPF. A Sun Protection Factor gives the skin extra protection against UV-radiation. For example, a sun lotion with a Sun Protection Factor of 15, makes it possible to sit in the sun 15 times longer, than when you´re not wearing an SPF. Please note, that sunburn can occur quite quickly, so someone with skin type 2 (a very fair skin) can burn after 20 minutes, with an SPF of 15 this will happen after 5 hours. When you buy sun protection, you first need to determine your skin type, after that you choose the right Sun Protection Factor.

Skin Types

A very fair skin type that burns easily and hardly tans. People with red hair often have this skin type.

The Sun Protection Factor is created using filters; there are mineral filters and chemical filters. Mineral filters block and reflect UV-radiation, examples of mineral filters are: titanium dioxide and zinc oxide. With mineral filters it´s hard to get a tan, so chemical filters are used more often. Chemical filters are absorbed by the skin, not everybody like that, partly because the long term effects of these substances are not known yet. People with a sensitive skin can also react badly to chemical filters, you might want to keep this in mind when you are buying your sun protection product.

Sun protection products

Cream

Sun protection cream is a thick and rich ointment, because of its texture it can be very beneficial for people with a dry skin. The downside to sun protection cream is, that it can cause a stripy tan because it´s harder to apply it evenly.

Milk

Sun protection milk is more liquid than cream, so it´s easier to rub in and will apply more evenly. Sun protection milk is suitable for people with a normal skin.

Spray

Sun protection spray is even more liquid and needs to be applied to the body with a nozzle. Of all sun protection products a spray offers the most even application, it´s also very useful for hairy bodies. Important: never spray this type of sunscreen directly in the face, spray it in the hands, and then apply it to the face.

Gel

Sun protection gel is not greasy or sticky, it is also easily absorbed by the skin. There are also special gels that can´t freeze, like the Care Plus Skin Saver Gel, which is ideal for winter sports.

Oil

Tanning oil is an oil that actually enhances the tanning process, but even these products can have a Sun Protection Factor.

Aftersun

After tanning, it´s best to moisturize the skin, an aftersun is particularly suitable for that. An aftersun can also be very refreshing after a day in the sun.

Good to know

A product with a Sun Protection Factor only protects against UVB-radiation. It won´t harm you, to protect yourself against UVA-radiation too; this protection in not automatically included in sun protection products. A product that also offers protection against UVA-radiation will indicate this clearly on the bottle. Important: the UVA-factor should be at least a third of the SPF.

The closer you are to the equator, the brighter the UV-radiation! So in the Caribbean, you´ll need a higher SPF than in Great Britain. Also in the mountains the UV-radiation is stronger. Is there snow? If so it can reflect the UV-radiation. Use sun protection!

Do you want to get a tan? Then choose a product with a low Sun Protection Factor. Products with a high Sun Protection Factor tend to block the sun completely (hence the name sun block), the skin won´t be able to get used to the sun and get a tan.

The skin of children is very sensitive to UV-radiation and therefore needs to be protected with a high SPF.

It will take a while (about thirty minutes), before a sun protection product becomes effective, be sure to apply it on time.

Sun protection products have a limited shelf life, so after a while it will lose its usability. It´s best to buy a new product every year.

Sunlight is also important. UV-radiation helps the human body to produce vitamin D3, make sure you get a couple of minutes of sun several times a day.